Fighting back against the BBC, Mark Reckless, MP takes it to the BBC's Evan Davis

Mark Reckless has the whole story on his blog. There are some things that the BBC just don't want to allow to be discussed.

How understanding of Evan Davis

A tweet from the BBC's Evan Davis

I did respond with a pertinent question but Evan Davis has not deigned to reply

Why am I not surprised?

Blimey, what happened?

The Today interview with David Cameron was a surprise. Evan Davis pushed but not too much, was politely aggressive but interrupted less than I expected and certainly less than John Humphrys interrupted Gordon Brown in yesterday's equivalent interview.

What struck me was how much better an interviewee David Cameron is than Gordon Brown. David Cameron sounds controlled and engaged, rather than in a temper and dismissive of criticism. There is warmth in David Cameron's voice, maybe too much 'sincerity' but he sounds human and actually reacts to questioning, whereas Gordon Brown just bags on and on and on and on on his chosen line and ignores the actual question.

To sum up, a good interview by Evan Davis and, apart from his jokey "Daily Star" favourite newspaper answer, I think David Cameron came out ahead and I'm not even a great fan of his. I wonder how Gordon Brown would have reacted when asked what his favourite newspaper was?

I have used a new label for this post - 'BBC impartiality', I hope this won't be the only time I can do so in this election campaign, but somehow I think it will feature less than 'BBC bias' and 'BBC/NuLab'.

The BBC just see almost everything from the Labour government's point of view

Listen to the Radio 4 Today programme interview with Lord Krebs this morning, it's a fine example of the sort of built-in bias so prevalent at the BBC. Lord Krebs describes how Jacqui Smith when Home Secretary wrote to the government's Chief Scientific Advisor "I don't care what the advice is, I've already made up my mind". You will hear Evan Davis sniggering in the background during this claim, Jacqui Smith being an expendable, indeed expended, ex-Minister. However when Lord Krebs goes on to state that Gordon Brown had previously done the same thing when the previous chairman of ACMD "had to write to him to say please desist from telling the public what your view is before you've received advice on cannabis." the mood palpably changes and you hear one of Evan Davis's trademark move the interview away from dangerous ground - nervous "right" - and onto the more "fundamental" question of why "you need official science advisers for government?" Yes that's the "fundamental" question Evan, not why this Labour government ignores scientific advice when it is at variance with their prejudices.

Evan Davis is indignant

BBC Radio 4's Today programme contained a piece described by the Today website thus:

"The Conservatives have been criticised for using questionable crime statistics in the run up to the election. The party sent out figures to constituencies in England and Wales suggesting big rises in violent crime while Labour have been in power, but the way the figures were compiled changed in 2002. Home affairs editor Mark Easton outlines the controversy and shadow home secretary Chris Grayling explains his party's use of the figures."

Evan Davis's indignant interview of Chris Grayling was a classic of its kind. Oddly I don't recall such righteous indignation ever being used against Gordon Brown or Alistair Darling over their dodgy economic data.

Maybe Evan 'Tinsel Tits' Davis is harder on the Conservative than Labour politicians for some reason that we should know of? I await his next interview with a senior Labour politician so a comparison can be made, although I note that that won't be this morning.

Bias at the BBC

The BBC has allowed its journalist and Radio 4 Today presenter Evan Davis to remain a key member of the policy think-tank Social Market Foundation. Evan Davis sits on the policy advisory board of the Social Market Foundation, an organisation that sets out to influence the political agenda. The Social Market Foundation, whilst it has Conservative members on its advisory board, was used by Gordon Brown to deliver a major speech setting out the Government’s long-term policy aims.

How could anyone think that the BBC was biased?

Compare and contrast

Compare and contrast the treatment by the BBC Today programme of Michael Fallon at 07:09 and John Prescott at 08:10. Slight difference on tone and respect shown wouldn't you agree?

Helping Gordon Brown

BBC Radio 4 Toady programme interview with Gordon Brown between 08:10 and 08:28 by a mostly respectful and helpful Evan Davies. You can tell when Gordon is stressed and about to issue a Brownie, he starts to "I I I I I" and uses the word "look" with some hard emphasis. It all sounds plausible and he is determined to keep the message going out. "LOW PUBLIC DEBT", opposition policies are "ridiculous", "only if you properly understand... to our opponents", "based upon what is right for the Country", "sustainable public finances". When asked if an incoming Government after the next election would inherit as good an economy as Labour did in 1997. Gordon Brown ignores the question and only talks about the 10 years of economic growth. Evan Davies pushes that point but Gordon Brown continues with the same Brownies, that increased spending on health and education was investment. With "hindsight what mistakes" were made, "whole economic policy was focussed on keeping inflation low" - apparently nobody saw foresaw the sub-prime crisis. Evan Davies asked about cutting interest rates in 2005 and wouldn't Gordon Brown have rather have boosted public finances instead. Gordon Brown keeps to the line that it is all the fault of American sub-prime. If the bankers got it wrong, didn't you make the same mistake. "Will we get growth this year", apparently this only depends upon level of international cooperation. "End Boom and bust", on your watch we've had "boom and bust", "just admit it", let's agree one thing "are you refusing even to use the words boom and bust". Gordon Brown will not admit this and seeing the time coming up to 08:28 he repeats the mantras until time runs out.

In summary, Evan Davies was too respectful and didn't challenge the Great Clunking failure enough. Meanwhile Gordon Brown stuck rigidly to his script and refused to answer the key questions. Actually if you don't really know what mistakes Gordon Brown has made it might even have sounded convincing and that's my fear; that the public might fall for the Brownies again.


I am eagerly awaiting Evan Davies's next interview with David Cameron to hear whether he is quite as respectful of him; somehow I doubt it.

A pro-Labour comment by a BBC journalist, I am shocked

Evan Davis spoke out in support of Alistair Darling on the ever toady Today programme on BBC Radio 4. I am shocked...

BBC trying to minimise the reports of house price falls

Evan Davis on the Toady programme either tried a bit of "voodo economics" or doesn't understand the relationship between 1 month and 3 month averages. Whilst interviewing a spokesman from the Nationwide building society whose latest monthly house price survey shows that prices fell by 2.5% during May, Evan Davis was at great pains to ask what the three month on three month price drop was as single month falls are a less reliable guide than that for longer periods. This is true but not the whole truth. Fionnuala Earley, the Nationwide's chief economist said that "The pace of house price falls accelerated in May as more weak economic news added to the gathering momentum of negative sentiment about the housing market." If house prices rose by 0.5% in month 1 were level in month 2 and fell by 0.5% in month 3 then the three month average would be around 0% but wouldn't that be misleading as the trend is definitely downwards.

In fact the Nationwide showed a House Price fall of 0.3% in January, 0.5% in February, 0.6% in March, 1.1% in April and 2.5% in May. Now do you think that the figure that is more indicative of the extent of the house price fall is a three month average or the latest month's figure? I wonder what Evan Davis thinks and why the
BBC are so keen to minimise the reporting of house price falls.

BBC male presenters and the contents of their trousers

I have read far too much about this this weekend. Today I read in the BBC's entertainment (!) pages that Jeremy Paxman has expressed concern about the quality of Marks and Spencer's underwear, he was quoted as having said in an email to the company that "Their pants no longer provide adequate support" - the mind boggles. But not as much as mine did when I read yesterday that Evan Davies, the BBC's economics editor and presenter of Dragons Den has the nickname of "Tinsel Tits" because his nipples are pierced, "and he is said to have a Prince Albert in the trouser department".